To be entirely honest, there was a moment in my life when I felt as though Canadian rock was beneath me. I felt that the straightedge, formulaic rock ‘n’ roll of Sam Roberts or Joel Plaskett was two-dimensional, and that the more intricately-woven collectives — like Arcade Fire or Beirut — made for more beneficial listening.

Thankfully, I’ve since snapped out of my haze of fevered pretension and learned to enjoy the simpler, whimsical music that our country’s musicians have so graciously provided us. Through this bout of open-mindedness, I’ve come to truly appreciate the talent that comes out of Canada’s expansive music scene — ranging from no-bullshit rock ‘n’ rollers like the Arkells to gloomy, experimentalist weirdoes like Timber Timbre.

The Canadian music scene has it all — including a particularly memorable group by the name of Elliott Brood.

A band that would be filthy rich if its members earned a nickel for every time someone assumed that they were a solo artist (and then subsequently demanded why the hell they’re named Elliott Brood if none of them actually carry that name), Elliott Brood is a band that holds the features of a distinctively Canadian group.

A touch of folk and a hint of rock, Elliott Brood is reminiscent of older Canadian acts like The Band, and can identify as a significantly better version of faux-lk acts such as The Lumineers or Mumford & Sons (to quote Urban Dictionary, “faux-lk is folk music that is overproduced and pretends to be grassroots but in no way is”).

The band has it’s position as a talented and tight-knit group, with a delightful set of easy-to-listen-to and danceable songs. Its music is refreshingly genial, comfortably familiar, and, most of all, utterly carefree.

In the upcoming months of assignments and midterms, followed by more assignments and more tests, this is a band worth listening to. Your new go-to ‘happy music’, Elliott Brood will send you into a spiraling reverie of trans-Canada roadtrips, followed by almost guaranteed goosebumps.

Elliott Brood’s top five songs:

-Write It All Down For You
-Jigsaw Heart
-Nothing Left
-Northern Air
-The Valley Town

Stay up to date. Sign up for our weekly newsletter, sent straight to your inbox: